Time Warner has announced plans to spin off its troubled internet division AOL. The plans came in documents submitted to the Securites and Exchange Commission (SEC), the US stock market regulator.
Time Warner has raised the prospects of spinning off AOL on previous occasions. Chairman and chief executive Jeff Bewkes said today the company was 'working to determine the right ownership structure for AOL'.
Time Warner also reported that revenue at AOL fell at an annual rate of 23% in the first quarter of the year to $867m with advertising sales down 20% and subscription revenue falling 27%.
Time Warner last year announced that it would split AOL's dial-up internet and advertising businesses into separate divisions. This was seen as facilitating a sale or merger of either business.
